Pakistan has initiated a major military operation in Balochistan aimed at dismantling terrorist networks across the province. Named Operation Shaban, the campaign is being jointly conducted by the Army, Frontier Corps, and Balochistan Police.
Operation Shaban was launched in response to the deadly terrorist attack on July 7 in the Mangi Dam area, which claimed the lives of 27 police personnel.
The operation involves ground troops as well as Air Force-linked operations that are targeting militants in the province’s rugged mountainous terrain. Since its launch, security forces have killed around 123 militants belonging to various extremist groups across the province.
There has been a sharp spike in terrorist attacks across Balochistan in recent months. Militants from the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which is allied with Afghanistan’s Taliban, and the banned Balochistan Liberation Army have increasingly targeted state forces, foreign investment projects, and infrastructure in the mineral-laden region.
Earlier this month, the country’s top civilian and military leadership, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief General Asim Munir, convened in Quetta, Balochistan’s capital, to assess the deteriorating security situation. “One thing is decided: it is a mutual and singular decision of the civil and military leadership that we must end terrorism collectively,” Sharif, who chaired the meeting, said.
